Bruised
by LiveLoveDanceSpin
Summary: Ray had waited all his life for that one girl that was meant for him. When Coral comes to his high school in San Diego, he's sure that she's the one. But Coral doesn't seem to fit in, and avoids speaking to anyone but Ray. And Ray soon discovers why.
1. Chapter 1

Coral Reese: h t t p : / / c o n t e n t 8 . f l i x s t e r . c o m / p h o t o / 1 1 / 3 3 / 2 7 / 1 1 3 3 2 7 6 6 _ g a l . j p g

Ray Walters: h t t p : / / w w w . m e n h a i r s t y l e . o r g / w p – c o n t e n t / u p l o a d s / 2 0 1 1/ 1 0 / s h o r t – s h a g g y – h a i r c u t s – f o r – m e n . j p g

**Chapter One:**

People always say that there's someone out there for everyone, someone who was meant to be with you. As soon as I'd met _her_, I knew I'd met the one that was meant for me. But then, so did everyone else. But I wanted to be with her for more reason than her looks. I felt as if we had connected, the first time our eyes had met.

I suppose I'm getting ahead of myself.

My name is Ray Walters. I'm a junior in high school, seventeen years old. I play forward on the school soccer team. My father is a lawyer, who I almost never see because he's always working. My mother is a teacher at school, but is always too exhausted to really care about me when she comes home from work. So I've pretty much raised myself. I never really cared though; if I asked for anything, I would receive it. When I got to be a teenager, if I asked for money, I got it. No matter how much I asked for.

My views on money and personal objects changed, though, when Coral came into my life. She came to school halfway through second quarter at Shumway High School in San Diego, California. She caused a ripple throughout the school. So I'll start there in my story.

I sat down at the table with my friends, sitting next to my friend Frank. I took a fry off my plate and looked around at everyone, and they glanced at me. "Why's everyone so quiet?" I asked, looking at Frank.

The doors behind us opened, and he pointed at whoever had walked in. "She's why. Take a look at her, dude." I turned around in my seat and my jaw dropped at the girl who was standing with her arms crossed by the metal doors.

"She new?" I asked, not taking my eyes off of her. Her hair was long, straight, and pitch black, and her eyes were a deep blue, which were framed by thick black lashes. Her cheeks were a natural pink color, as were her lips. Her straight black bangs went below her eyebrows and hung in her eyes. Her cheekbones were high and sharp, and her skin was a pale, unhealthy white. She was slender and frail looking, but was still the most beautiful girl I'd ever seen.

"It's her first day here," Frank replied, still staring at her. I didn't glance at him when he replied, and kept looking at her. Her graceful neck turned and her eyes met mine. Her expression had been plain and empty before, but when she looked at me, it became angry, and she swiftly glanced away and walked out of the room.

Frank laughed and punched my arm. "Dude, what'd you do already to piss her off? She's been here for what, three, four hours?"

I hit him back, frustrated. "Nothing. I didn't even know she was here until just now!" I went back to my food, but was asking myself the same question that Frank had; what had I done to make her angry already?

_Coral:_

She hated being here. She didn't even know why her dad had made her come here. Couldn't he punish her like any other father would punish his daughter?

She shook her head and walked into the cafeteria. A ton of other girls at the school were wearing dresses or short skirts, some short shorts. She was wearing blue jeans and a plain green t-shirt, with her hair down and black sneakers on. But she was comfortable, so she felt fine.

She felt someone staring at her, and when she turned her head to see who it was, her eyes locked with a boy with shaggy blond hair. Without knowing why, she narrowed her eyes and frowned, staring at him for a moment before walking out of the room. She wasn't hungry for this crappy food anyways.

Instead she walked outside and dropped her bag in the grass and lay down beside it, staring up at the bright blue sky. It was cluttered with puffy white clouds, and she smiled, trying to find shapes in the clouds. The sky was one of the only good things at this crappy school.

She closed her eyes, but opened them soon, feeling someone sit down next to her. She quickly sat up and glanced over, half expecting to see the blond boy from the cafeteria, but instead saw the boy that had been next to him.

"Hi," he said, grinning. "You're the new girl, aren't you? Coral?" She paused for a second before nodding, but did not speak. "Thought so. I saw you in the cafeteria a few minutes ago. It looked like you were angry at my friend Ray. Were you?"  
>She frowned but shook her head. "Is that his name? I haven't met him. And now, if you'll excuse me, I think lunch just ended." She stood up and grabbed her bag, but the boy took her hand and pulled her back.<p>

"Let me walk you to class, Coral," he said, smiling. She pulled her hand away from him, narrowing her eyes.

"No thanks." She turned and walked away from him, pushing open the doors to the school and walking inside.

_Ray:_

I watched as Frank went out and tried to hit on the new girl—whose name I had discovered was Coral. It frustrated me, but I also laughed as she walked away after giving him a nasty look. I almost went to talk to her, but she'd already given me a bad look once, I didn't want to go for twice. So I stayed where I was and laughed in Frank's face when he came back inside.

"Denied!" I said, cracking up. He hit my arm hard and rolled his eyes, walking away from me.

"Someone's immature," he mumbled. I followed him, still grinning.

"Why? Because you got denied by the hot new girl?" I mocked, punching his shoulder. "Someone's sensitive!" He put me in a headlock and strangled me for a moment before letting me go. I shoved him and he stumbled, but he cracked a smile. "Good, you aren't pissed?"

"Nah," Frank said, shrugging. "She's hot, but it seems like she's bitter to everything but the clouds."

"I don't know, dude. She seemed to like you more than me. Maybe you should ask her to the semester dance."

He thought about it for a second. "Maybe. But if she denies me, I'm not going to be the only one embarrassed. Because you're going to ask her to it when she tells me no."

I laughed. "Fine. So neither of us will be embarrassed because it'll just prove that she's a hater and bitter."

Someone cleared their throat behind us.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two:**

I turned around to see Coral standing behind us, with her arms crossed and a hurt look in her eyes. She had a piece of paper in her hand, which I realized was her school schedule.

"Go on," she sneered, brushing past us. "Don't let the hateful, bitter girl stop you from enjoying yourself." I turned and looked after her as she hurried away, and swore I saw her wipe her eyes. I looked back at Frank, who was staring horror-struck at Coral's back. "Well I think we just killed both our chances, Frank."

He nodded in agreement. "So do I, Ray. So do I." He sighed and started walking towards our next class. I followed him for a second, then shook my head.

"I gotta go apologize, man. She's new here, I can't let her think we already hate her." I gave a short wave and began following her.

"Good luck," Frank called, and I knew he meant it, because it was going to take way too much to get her to forgive us. I caught a glance of her checking her schedule and walking into a classroom. I walked up to it and saw her take a seat in the back row and immediately lay her head down.

I sighed and opened the door. The teacher glanced at me and frowned. "What do you need, Ray? I'm in the middle of class."

"Can I talk to Coral for a moment?" I asked. The teacher opened her mouth to say no, but I held up a hand. "It'll only take a second. I'll leave right away afterwards."

She sighed and motioned towards the door, looking at Coral. "Feel free," she said. "Be back in five minutes."

Coral was glared at me, leaning back in her chair. "No thanks," she replied bitterly. "I'm fine."

The teacher shook her head. "Please, Coral. Ray doesn't lie when he says he won't go until you talk to him."

She groaned and stood up, walking over to me and pushing past me and going to stand against the other wall and crossed her arms. "So, what do you want?" she asked, frowning.

"Coral, I'm sorry for what I said," I told her, walking over to her. She moved away from me immediately. "I didn't mean any of it. I was just mocking Frank, because he mocked me when you were glaring at me earlier."

She shrugged. "Yeah, I'm sure that's an excuse. Just joking. I found it so funny," she said sarcastically. "I'm sure it was hilarious."

I shook my head. "Coral, it's a bad excuse, but I don't know what else to say to make it better."

"You can't. Remember, I'm hateful and bitter," she glanced back at the door to her classroom. "I'm going back to class." She started walking towards the door, but I did what Frank did; I grabbed her hand to stop her.

"Just let me try to make it up to you," I murmured. "Go to the semester dance with me. Please."

She turned and looked at me, her face emotionless. She pulled her hand out of mine and held up one finger. "One chance. I'll give you one more chance." I smiled, but she kept a straight face.

"Great," I said. "I can give you details later, if you like." She shrugged.

"Let's just see," she said. "It depends how you act until then. And you better watch out, I'm a very harsh judge of character." My smile faded, and she cracked a small smile. She had a wonderful smile. She turned and walked back to class. "Goodbye, Ray."

"Bye, Coral," I replied, walking to my next class, not caring at all that I was going to be late and probably get in trouble. It didn't bother me; I was going to the semester dance with the most beautiful girl I've ever seen.

I caught up with Frank after school. "How'd your apology with Coral go?" he asked, pulling his backpack over his shoulder.

"Good. Great actually," I replied, grinning. "I asked her to the semester dance. And she said yes."

His jaw dropped. "No way. She said yes? After she glared at you and caught you saying all that?"

I rolled my eyes. "Unlike you, I know how to apologize, and apologize the right way." I punched his shoulder and laughed.

Frank rolled his eyes. "Well, maybe she just liked you better all along. Girls are weird, you know. They mess with your head." He jumped on the roof of my car—a white Mercedes Benz AMG—and sat back. "Look, she's walking towards the parking lot now. Go say something to her."

I looked at where he was pointing and saw Coral walking towards a beat-up old Volkswagen Rabbit. She was digging through her backpack, my guess was that she was looking for her car keys. She dropped her backpack on the car hood and continued digging through it. I shoved Frank.

"Off my car," I mumbled, laughing and walking over to her. She didn't see me and tucked her long black hair behind her ear to keep it out of her face. I put a hand on her shoulder and she jumped. "Lose your keys?"

She smiled slightly. "Yeah. I think I may have." She dug through the pocket for a couple more seconds before giving up. "I haven't been driving long, I keep forgetting to take a spare key with me just in case."

"I can give you a ride," I offered. "I have a car, just tell me where to go." I motioned towards my car, where Frank was still sitting on it.

Coral saw him and frowned. "Is he going?" she asked. "I don't like him. He's rude to me." She began looking inside her car for her keys.

"No," I said. "Frank's got his own car. He's just trying to annoy me by sitting on my car. Do you want a ride?"

She smiled, more than her tiny one of before. "That would be wonderful, Ray. Thank you." She slung her backpack over her shoulder and followed me as I went back to my car.

"Off the car, Frank. Go home," I told him, unlocking the car and opening the passenger door for Coral, and she got inside. I got inside the driver's side, but Frank stayed on the hood of my car. I started the car and backed away, causing him to fall off the car, and I heard Coral laugh. I glanced at her, and she was covering her mouth to hide her teeth as she laughed, the corner of her eyes crinkled, and I could make out dimples where her hand wasn't covering.

I smiled as she laughed, and pulled out of the school parking lot. "So, where to, Coral?" I asked.

"Just go straight for a while," she said, pointing right in front of us. "I live a little far, I hope you don't mind."

I shook my head. "It's fine with me," I said. "I live this way, anyways, so I doubt it's too far out of my way." I glanced around for any cops before speeding up. She glanced at me uneasily, biting her lip. "What? Never gone this fast before?"

Coral raised her eyebrows. "Have you seen my car? I'm lucky if it goes half this speed. And none of the rest of my family drives, so I've only been in the car while I'm driving in my crappy car."

I laughed. "Well, I can take you to and from school from now on if you like," I offered. She didn't respond for several minutes.

"If you could take me to school tomorrow, that would be wonderful, because my car is at school. But I can drive myself home." She fiddled with her necklace and did not look at me as she spoke.

"Okay," I replied, coming to a stop at a fork in the road. "Which direction from here?"

She pointed left, into the older, run-down neighborhood. I was almost confused; how could such a beautiful girl live in such an awful neighborhood? But I shook my head, calling myself stupid as I turned where she told me to.

"Fifth house on the right," she said, and I pulled into the driveway of a tiny house with peeling brown paint. A woman—who looked no older than twenty-five—was standing outside, her face looking nervous. Coral sighed, rubbing her eyes. "Thanks for the ride. I'll see you tomorrow." She grabbed her bag and got out of the car, shutting the door carefully and walking over to the woman. I listened close, to see what she said to her. Coral walked up to her and gave her a hug. "Don't worry, Aunt Ripple, I'm fine."

I began pulling out of the driveway, and she turned and waved to me, slightly. I watched the house in my rear-view mirror. Coral and her aunt went inside, and I drove out of the neighborhood.

"Coral, Ripple," I muttered. "Her family's got some odd names."

By time I got home, my mother was already home. And instead of being up in her room taking a nap, she was on the couch, reading a book and drinking coffee. "Uh, hey mom."

She glanced up at me and smiled. "Hello, Ray," she said. "I heard you had a fairly eventful day at school."

I dropped my bag and went straight to the kitchen, looking for something to eat. "What do you mean?"

"There's a new girl at school, isn't there? I heard her name was Coral…Coral Reese?" she closed her book and took a drink of coffee. "You're going to the dance with her?"

I turned and looked at her, shrugging. "Yeah. I asked her and she said yes. Do you care?"

She shook her head. "Who does she live with? What do you know about her at all?" She gave me a skeptical look.

"She lives with her Aunt Ripple. And I don't know much about her yet, it's only been one day." I grabbed a bag of potato chips and turned to face her.

"Find out more about her. Invite her over for dinner before the dance, so your father and I can meet her. I don't like the idea of you dating a girl we haven't met. Okay, Ray?"

I sighed, running a hand through my hair. "Whatever. I'll invite her over before the dance." I grabbed my backpack and hopped up the stairs two at a time and sitting on my bed.

I opened my backpack and dug through it, looking for my homework, but pulled out a silver chain, with a circular aquamarine stone, with the water element symbol carved into it. I turned it over in my hand, and on the back, a name was carved into it.

Coral.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three:**

When I got to Coral's house the next day, she was sitting in a lawn chair, away from the grass, and searching through her backpack. I smiled and rolled down the window of the car. "Comin?" I called, making her jump. She smiled when she saw me, standing up and walking over to the car and getting in.

"Hi," she said, buckling her seatbelt and setting her backpack on her lap. Her hair was up in a sloppy ponytail, with strands of it hanging on the sides of her face.

I held up the necklace by the chain. "Is this yours?" I asked. Her eyes widened and she snatched it out of my hand, fastening it around her neck and holding the gemstone in her hands.

"Yes! Where'd you find it?" she asked, looking back up at me.

"I found it in my backpack. It must have fallen in there yesterday when I was giving you a ride home."

Coral's face became confused, and then it became even paler than usual. "Yeah, I'm sure that's what happened," she said softly. I frowned.

"You okay?" I asked, reaching over and turning her face towards mine slightly. She pulled away automatically.

"Fine," she mumbled. "Let's just get to school." She crossed her arms and looked out the window.

We drove in silence most of the way to school. I stopped in the parking lot, but caught her elbow before she could get out of the car. "Did I do something wrong?" I asked her. Her face softened, and she sat back in the seat.

"No," she replied quietly. "You didn't do anything wrong. My life's just been a little complicated lately." I moved my hand down and took hers in mine.

"Want to tell me about it?" I asked softly, holding her hand lightly. She looked down and pulled away.

"I can't." She got out of the car and hurried away before I could say another word.

Frank caught up to me on the way to first hour, frowning. "Hey, what the hell was that stunt you pulled? Dumping me off the hood of your car? Not cool."

I grinned. "Well, you wouldn't get off. Besides, Coral thought it was pretty funny. It actually got her to laugh." He punched my shoulder but laughed a little.

"It wasn't funny, to me."

"Well you don't find anything but yourself funny," I said, and he punched me again. It only made me laugh. "Kidding, Frank. Take a chill pill or two." Frank rolled his eyes and walked into his class.

"Later, man," he called over his shoulder. I laughed at how sensitive he was and turned, taking a few steps while checking my cell phone for missed calls or texts, and accidentally ran into someone. "Sorry."

I looked up and saw Coral kneeling down, picking up a few notebooks. I knelt and joined her, grabbing a small book to help her grab everything. When she saw me take it off the floor, she squeaked and snatched it out of my hands. "Whoa," I said, looking up at her. She was holding it, pressed against her chest.

"S-s-sorry," she stuttered. "B-but I don't like people touching my book. Don't ask why, please. It's just very personal." I smiled.

"Hey, it's fine. I didn't know, it's fine." I reached out to touch her shoulder, but she jerked away from me and let her hair fall in her face.

"I need to get to class, Ray. I suppose I'll see you later. Maybe. I-I don't know. Bye." Her cheeks were red as she brushed past me and into her first class. I watched her go, waving slightly, but utterly confused what about what had just happened. I just shrugged and readjusted my backpack before heading to class.

At lunch, my ex-girlfriend Kate sat next to me, her low-cut top and miniskirt had the rest of the guys at the table staring at her. But her huge smile was made only for me.

"Heya, Ray," she greeted, taking a couple of fries from my plate. I raised an eyebrow at her.

"Um, hi Kate?" I said slowly, watching her carefully. "What do you want, exactly?"

"So, Ray," she started, giving me a sly smile. "A ton of us, including Frank, are all going to the beach the morning of the dance. Wanna come?"

I thought about it for a second. "Sure. I guess." I shrugged and she grinned, bouncing up and down.

"Great. So, we're all just meeting there. I'm assuming you're going to ride with Frank. Carrie and I are going in my convertible. And…there was one last thing I wanted to ask you."

I raised an eyebrow and waited, but she didn't speak again. "Well, what is it, Kate?"

Her smile didn't fade. "Come to the dance with me, Ray. We've gone to all the others together. Just because we aren't dating anymore, that doesn't mean we still can't go."

I blinked. "Kate, for one, we broke up. I don't think we should go together. Two, I'm already going with someone to the dance."

Her smile slipped off her face. "What? Who?" she shook her head. "Wait. No. Bring whoever it is to the beach with you. And then we'll see who the better girlfriend would be." She stood up and grabbed her purse, flipping her hair over her shoulder and stalking away from me.

I glanced back at her, and saw Coral standing by the door, staring at me with a look of hurt in her eyes. I got up to go explain what she had just seen. But she turned away and dashed through the doors, wiping her eyes.

"Coral!" I called, running after her. I grabbed her hand to stop her from moving. She didn't look at me, but didn't pull away.

"Go away," she mumbled. "Let go of me." She started tugging her hand away, but I held on tightly.

"What's wrong, Coral?" I murmured, pulling her closer so she would have to face me. She looked at her feet.

"Nothing. Just let me go. Go to the dance with whoever that was sitting next to you back there. I don't care."

I cupped her chin in my hand, tilting it towards my face. "But I don't want to go to the dance with Kate. She's nothing but a self-absorbed brat. I want to go to the dance with you." Her lip quivered as she brought her eyes up to my face. "A couple friends and I are going to the beach before the dance, in the morning. You should come with us. It'll be fun."

When I said the word 'beach', her eyes flashed with pain, but the rest of her face lit up slightly. "Yeah. Okay." I smiled, and so did she, but I could see that it was forced.

"Come back to the lunch table with me."

Her face fell, and she shook her head. "I don't want to get close to too many people." After she'd spoken, she clamped her lips shut.

I raised an eyebrow. "Why don't you want to get too close to very many people?" I asked, confused.

"I…I just move a lot," she stumbled over her words, and it was obvious that she was lying. I nodded anyways. "Um, my class is far. I'm gunna…I'm gunna go. J-just tell me what time you'll be by Saturday after school or tomorrow or something." She hid her face and left.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four:**

After school, I found Coral by her car. "I'll pick you up at ten tomorrow morning," I said to her, making her jump, but she smiled at me.

"Okay, I'll be ready," she smiled and got into the front seat of her car, starting it and driving away. I waved at her before going to my own car and seeing Frank sitting on the hood.

"Hey!" Frank called, waving in the air. "So, you ditching the new girl and getting back together with Kate?"

I shoved him. "No. Kate asked me to the dance but I told her no. I'm going with Coral and that's it."

"Whatever. You going to the beach?"

"Yeah."

"You are giving me a ride, right?" he asked. "Like always when we take trips to the beach."

I shook my head, and he stared at me. I sighed. "I'm taking Coral to the beach. Sorry, man."

Frank didn't get mad. In fact, he started laughing. "So does Kate know you're taking her to the beach? 'Cause if she doesn't, she's going to flip out!"

I rolled my eyes at him. "Yeah. She knows. I'm just kinda scared of what Kate's going to do or say to Coral. She's a harsh girl, you know." I sighed. "I gotta get home, Frank. See you tomorrow."

"Sure. Just don't let Coral take your man card, like Kate did." He laughed and punched me in the shoulder before hopping off the hood and stuffing his hands in his pockets, walking to his car.

"You're going to catch a cold, Ray!" my mom nagged, trying to shove a windbreaker in my direction, and I was pushing it back at her.

"Mom, it's not like I'm going into the water. I'm not stupid. And besides, I'm taking a jacket." I held up my plain gray sweatshirt. She looked at me, skeptical, but sighed.

"Oh, alright. But when you have a cold tonight at the dance, don't blame me." I rolled my eyes and hugged her quickly.

"Bye Mom. I'll be back later to change for the dance." I grabbed my car keys and my jacket and went out to my car, getting into it and trying to remember my way to Coral's home.

When I pulled into her driveway, Coral was standing outside in a black sweatshirt, shorts, and black Uggs. Her aunt Ripple was standing next to her, her arms crossed and eyes narrow. She walked up before Coral did, as I got out of the car. "Are you Ray?" she asked, looking me over carefully.

"Yes," I replied, glancing at Coral, who shrugged and sighed. "I'm Ray."

"Nice to meet you. I'm Coral's aunt, Ripple. And I'm sure you'll treat my niece the best you can. Or else." She paused. "And keep her out of the water." She shot a glance back at Coral, who looked down and avoided meeting her aunt's eyes. "I don't want her to get sick."

"I will. And it's nice to meet you too, Miss Reese." I smiled. "I'll take good care of your niece." Coral looked up at me and smiled. Ripple sighed and waved Coral forward.

"Have fun. And remember, Coral; you'll have to deal with major consequences if you set so much as a foot in that ocean." Coral sighed and nodded, and I opened the door for her as she got into the car.

"I remember, Aunt Ripple," Coral murmured as I got into the car in the driver's side. I looked at her.

"Ready to go?"

"Yeah," she mumbled, buckling her seat belt. "Let's go." I pulled out of the driveway, and Ripple was sure to watch us until we were out of sight.

"The beach is going to be fun," I said, glancing at her. "Just promise me something, okay?"

She frowned. "What?" She looked at me suspiciously, obviously wondering if I was going to make her promise something stupid or impossible.

"Kate's going to the beach. Promise you won't let anything she says to you offend you at all." Coral sighed.

"I'll try. But answer me something, Ray. Is she your ex-girlfriend or something?"

I nodded. "Yes. But we broke up months ago. But Kate likes to make other people's lives harder. That's all."

"She's nothing to you?"

"Nothing at all," I responded immediately and reached over, taking her hand in mine, smiling. Her cheeks turned red and she placed her other hand over mine. "I really like you, Coral. I hope you know that."

She was silent for a moment, bringing her eyes up to my face. "I like you too, Ray," she murmured, but pulled her hands out of mine and turned to stare out the window, her hands now in her lap.

I smiled and looked ahead of me, towards the road. We weren't far from the beach, but that thought didn't comfort me. I wasn't prepared for what I would say or do if—when—Kate started harassing Coral. It wasn't like I could hit her, like I would hit a guy if he started terrorizing Coral. Kate was a girl, and if I hit her I could very well break her in half. And she wouldn't listen to me if I said anything. She might stop if Coral and she fought, and Coral one, but she was so tiny and frail-looking that I knew that Kate would come out on top if they started fighting.

I realized I had been squinting my eyes and holding the wheel tighter than usual when Coral spoke. "What are you thinking about so hard, Ray?"

I smoothed out my expression and shot a quick smile her way. "Nothing. The sun's just bright and I'm trying not to hit anything."

She raised an eyebrow but didn't say anything. I sighed and pulled up at the beach, where I saw Kate's car, Frank's, and a couple others belonging to people I knew. They had taken up a spot close to the water, and a guy was chasing Carrie, who was Kate's best friend, around. Kate was standing near Frank, bikini on and not so much as a shirt to keep her warm in the December chill.

I let out a breath. Let the battle begin.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter Five:**

As soon as Kate saw my car pull up, and Coral and I get out, she walked towards us. When she reached the gate, she leaned against it, obviously trying to seduce me or something stupid like that.

"Hi, Ray," she said, waving her fingers flirtatiously. "Is this your date to the dance? The one you dug up from the ground? She's, like, way too pale to be healthy." Kate walked around Coral like a tiger would circle its prey. "Sweetie, maybe you should go to the doctor. Maybe you're sick."  
>Coral's expression didn't change. "I'm perfectly healthy. But thank you for your concern." I caught the bit of sarcasm she mixed into her words and grinned.<p>

"Kate, this is Coral," I said, putting an arm around Coral's shoulders and leading her towards the others. Frank waved to me and smiled at Coral, but she didn't give him a second glance, and leaned into me slightly. Kate ran after us.

"Coral, you're hair is so, so black! Why don't you dye it a different color, instead of being so boring? Like blonde. Like, bleach blonde. It'd look so good which your nastily pale complexion."

"I like my hair the way it is, but thanks Barbie." Her response made the whole group laugh until Kate glared at every one of them.

"Barbie is a compliment, Coral. She's popular and beautiful."

"But her head's also empty." Everyone laughed again, and I spread a blanket on the sand, sitting down and grabbing another blanket. Coral sat beside me, and I put the blanket around her, and she leaned against me. I wrapped an arm around her waist. Kate's face burned red with anger and embarrassment.

"So? I have money. I don't need to be smart. Do you have money, Coral?" Kate asked. The group waited for her answer eagerly.

"No," she said, indifferent. "But my lack of money means that I'm a better person, because I'm not a spoiled bitch."

Everyone let out an "Oooh!" and Kate looked more furious than I had ever seen her. But she took a calming breath.

"Ray has money. Are you saying he's spoiled?"

"No." Coral didn't look at me, or anyone else. "But as Ray is not harassing me at the moment, I would say he is not spoiled."

Kate opened her mouth, but I interrupted her before she could speak. "Kate, are you seriously going to sit here and try to bother us for the next several hours? Keep your mouth shut and I think everyone will be happier."

"Keep my mouth shut?" Kate hissed. "You bring the new girl—a total _freak_—into our group and you expect me to keep my mouth shut?" She put her hands on her hips and glared at Coral. "You know what I've heard, freak? I've heard that the only reason you're even in San Diego is because your _daddy hates you_!"

I felt Coral go stiff, and her hands curled into fists. Kate noticed how this bothered her, and grinned. "Yeah. How does it feel, to be daddy's little girl one moment and then sent to live with your aunt far, far away because he can't stand the sight of you? I bet it hurts. And I bet your daddy has money. From what I've heard, your aunt is as poor as dirt. Which makes you dirt, Coral."

Coral's lip quivered, and I noticed a tear building in her eye. She tried to speak anyways. "My father does not hate me," she said, trembling. "I did something that upset him. But he does not hate me."

Kate laughed. "I know that if _I_ did something my dad didn't like, he'd just ground me, not send me away. And from the way you seem to be reacting, it seems like he does hate you. And you know it!"

I could tell Coral was done even before she jerked away from me and dashed across the sand, sobbing. I stood up to follow her, but Kate put a hand on my chest. "Let her go, Ray, darling. She's nothing to our group but a tiny little outsider." I brought my eyes down to her face, frowning and furious. I shoved her back, and she let out a little squeal before landing on her spoiled-rich ass.

"She's right, Kate," I snapped. "You are a spoiled bitch. No wonder I broke up with you. You're an arrogant little brat who has probably screwed every guy in school. You're nothing more than a slut." I turned and walked away from my friends, who were all staring at me in utter disbelief that I had insulted my ex-girlfriend and queen bee like that.

I looked to where Coral had run, and spotted her just in time to see her dive off some rocks and into the water.

"Shit!" I hissed at myself, remembering Ripple's warning about Coral going into the water.

I heard Frank walk up behind me, wide eyed. "That girl's crazy. It's the middle of December and she's in the freezing cold ocean." I looked at him.

"I'd go in there too if it was the only place to escape the psycho bitch back there," I said, sitting down a few feet from where she'd dove into the water.

"Well, I think you're going to be here a while, man," he replied. "I doubt Coral's going to come out while Kate's still here."

I shrugged. "I'll wait for her as long as it takes. Besides, I don't want to go anywhere near Kate. She may reveal her true form and attack us all with her pitch fork." That made Frank laugh.

"Did you really mean all of that, Ray?" he asked. "About Kate being spoiled and a slut?"

"One hundred percent. And you've got no idea how long I've wanted to say that to her, Frank. She's been pissing me off for months."

"You are one harsh guy, Ray, you know that?" Frank grinned. "Oh well. I just hope you put her in her place, because if you didn't, she's going to give your new girlfriend _hell_ for the rest of her life. Then again, as long as Kate doesn't bring up Coral's daddy issues, Coral may be able to handle Kate on her own. It doesn't seem like she let's anything about her life bother her except for the stuff with her dad."

"Get real, man. Kate's found Coral's weak spot. There is no way she's going to let it go now. I'll be surprised if she doesn't spread it throughout the school." I sighed and scanned the water for any sign of Coral. I thought I saw her black hair peak out of the water for a second, but it was gone soon enough. "If she doesn't come out soon, I'm gunna go look for her. She's too frail to stand being in that freezing water for too much longer."

_Coral:_

As soon as her body split the water, she felt so much better. Her tears mixed with the frigid water, and it made crying easier. Because she couldn't tell that she was anymore. She stopped moving and grabbed her hair in her hands, letting out a scream that was muffled by the water around her. Usual. But she felt so much better now that she'd gotten that out.

She pulled herself onto a nearby rock, letting the bitter wind hit her face and send chills through her entire body. She closed her eyes. The water felt nice around her, like it was washing away all her mistakes. Washing away her stupid argument with Ray's ex-girlfriend.

"What can I ever be to him?" she mumbled to herself. "That bitch Kate can be more for him than I ever can. I shouldn't have gotten involved." She reached up and felt the smooth aquamarine stone against her bare skin. "Why did he have to find you?"

She felt the stone disappear from between her fingers, and she scrambled to see where it could have gone. Then she stopped. Ray would find it. That much she knew, at least.

She saw Ray and Frank talking on the shore, not far from her. Ray looked furious. Part of her hoped he was pissed at Kate. The other part hoped he was angry at her. That would make life easier. She sank back into the water, swimming a little closer to hear what they were talking about.

His head turned and she darted under the water, to avoid him seeing her. She came up only until her ears were in the crisp air instead of the icy water, and she caught the last sentence Ray was saying.

"…too frail to stand being in that freezing water for too much longer."

She sighed and swam for the shore.


End file.
